Thursday, November 08, 2018 1:00 am

Komets 2 Rapid City 1

Tempers flare after K's notch 3rd straight

Journal Gazette

Phelix Martineau's two goals – both short-handed – led the Komets to a 2-1 victory over the Rapid City Rush on Wednesday night.

At Rushmore Plaza Civic Center, where the Komets will play again Friday and Saturday, the Komets extended their winning streak to three games and upended their rivals from the former Central Hockey League.

Lukas Hafner stopped 26 of 27 shots for Fort Wayne (4-5-0). Adam Carlson stopped 40 of 42 for the Rush (5-4-2), which came into the night on a 5-0-2 run.

The game marked the return of Shawn Szydlowski, the ECHL's MVP and leading scorer last season, who started the season playing in Norway but rejoined the Komets on Monday.

A failed attempt to clear the puck from the defensive zone allowed the Rush to net the first goal at 18:02.

On Rapid City's second-period power play, Martineau scored goals 1:42 apart, off a pass from Marco Roy, then off a rebound of a Jason Binkley shot.

At the final whistle, the teams came to blows when ex-Komets forward Garrett Klotz sent Andrew Petruzzelli headfirst into the boards.